Turkcest
by N.T. Embe
Summary: What else but a billion plus drabbles about our favorite group of ShinRa dogs, the Turks. - Now on Hiatus due to more One-Shots being made rather than Drabbles. Sorry to my readers! But check out my one shots now! It'll be the same thing, just separate!
1. Monday

**1.**

**Title:** Monday

**Rating:** PG

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 618

**Warning(s):** None.

**Summary:** For the Turks the week starts on Monday.

**Dedication:** To the people that still think the week begins anew each Sunday. IT DOESN'T!

**A/N:** I blame this one on my PASSIONATE LOATHING of Mondays. They are a HORRID thing.

**Song:** _Young Magdalene_ composed by Hikaru Nanase, from the anime Chrno Crusade.

---

An audible sigh never passed the man's lips. Regardless of whether Reno had just blown up his paperwork again and the mess was lighting the interns in the halls on fire, or if he had just been given another week's worth of paperwork to be done in a day. Tseng never sighed.

The weeks always dragged along, and once the weekend came by, with that blessed day of Sunday trailing the very end, it most certainly skipped by too fast. And though being the first one to wake up at five in the morning, and being the one to get to work early and bring the office to life was unpleasant, still he did not sigh.

The Turks had long fallen into a pattern, as those who have the same job do after years of working there. Every day had its own mood and problems. And though he should have been irked that it happened _every single _Monday, Tseng merely shrugged it off and didn't bother to watch the clock.

Rude would drag himself in about half an hour past due, his usual silence tainted with a grogginess that was shown in the unusually larger cup of coffee he cradled in his arms as he entered the office. With a nod to his boss, he would pick up the papers dealt out upon his desk and get to work.

Elena came in an hour after the bald Turk, more awake and peppy than anyone in their right minds should have been on the first day of the week. Her outfit was dosed in a new fragrance, as could be expected, and her hair was freshly trimmed, her dazzling smile just about blinding.

Which could have explained why Rude refused to remove his shades even during the in-office hours of their job.

Hours would tick by and the two men couldn't care less about their missing comrade. Elena was the only one who frequented glances at the clock, but even those became less common as she sank into the files that awaited her signature and review.

And then… at long last… Reno would stride in, elegant disarray and a wink at Tseng who was calmly signing away upon one of a great mass of papers on his desk. Rude would raise an eyebrow at the redhead before receiving a devilish grin in response.

"Reno! You're four hours late! Don't tell me you got drunk again," Elena chided, piping up and piercing the orderly silence of the room.

"What's it to ya, 'Lena? Not like you don' join me sometimes," came the easy response and a grin. "'Sides, Tseng doesn't mind, now do ya Tseng?"

To this the Wutian Turk remained silent. Reno smirked and threw himself down into his chair and kicked his feet up on his desk.

"Told ya, 'Lena!"

The blonde Turk was frowning and huffed quietly, getting ready to say something before she was interrupted by a loud bang. Reno nearly fell back in his chair, pitching forward instead after a moment to glance at the huge stack of files that had appeared miraculously upon his desk.

"Wha—?!"

But his answer was soon given as Tseng suddenly swept up in front of his desk again and dropped another load of paperwork on the red head's desk. The same sound was made and Tseng disappeared.

"What! TSENG! Come on man! I was just _kidding_! Seriously! Tseng! Tseng I'm not doing this paperwork! Tseng damn it! Listen to me!"

The Wutian Turk silently stepped out of the office, shutting the door on Reno's incessant shouting. A barely visible smile etched itself onto his lips and he breathed a pleased sigh.

Okay, so maybe Tseng did sigh sometimes.


	2. Sudsy

**2.**

**Title:** Sudsy

**Rating:** Erm… let's just rate it R for safety.

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 826

**Warning(s):** Nudity

**Summary:** After a long day, all a certain Turk wants to do is relax and take a long bath.

**Dedication:** To my best friend Alice, who probably holds the record for greatest number of extremely long baths within a DAY (let alone a WEEK). I love you Al, just… yeah, nevermind.

**A/N:** Dude… this turned out to be more pron-ish than I thought it would. I didn't do it on purpose, I swear!

**Song:** _High on Life_ sung by Rasputina, from their album Frustration Plantation Bonus CD.

---

There was something about just that first step into hot water that sent shivers down her spine. How it felt different if the water was still pouring into the tub, or if she had shut it off and it now sat still and steaming, waiting for her. When her toe first touched the warm and smoky water after standing so long on the cold tiles of her bathroom, it sent a shock through her body that, she was sure, she sometimes just imagined and never really felt. She would quickly withdraw her foot and step back onto the cold floor before cautiously lifting it up again and then slowly putting her toe back into the tub of water just a couple of inches from brimming over the sides and spilling all over her clean floor.

The lights were usually dimmed, because she wanted a soft and relaxing atmosphere after a long day of paperwork, or babysitting her work partners, or being out in the field, taking care of something or other for the President.

When she slipped her foot into the water, her leg soon sliding completely into the clouded liquid that embraced her limb like a strangely cool lover in the midst of heated play, it was all she could do not to bite her lower lip and shiver again. But soon another leg followed and then she turned to face the wall where various bubble baths and soaps lined the edge.

Lying down into the water was also a strange procedure, with her body tense with excitement and Goosebumps already racing up her legs and arms and breasts. But she sank down into the water at last, letting out a surprised gasp and hissing breath that sent a violent tremble through her body, swishing the water slightly.

She would gulp and shiver and sink down further into the tub, her legs sliding forward, knees bending slightly, and her head tipping forward for fear of ducking under the steaming water too quickly. But at last her short blonde hair would tickle the back of her neck and water would kiss at it wholesomely and she would jerk forward slightly, remembering that it was nothing to get scared of.

But it was the exposure of wet, heated skin to cold air that sent another gasp past her lips and her arms fervently thrown around her breasts as she sunk under again. She would massage her nipples in hopes that they would warm up after that cruel twist from hot to cold and then back again.

Trying to sink as far under the water as she could to press her body away from that chilly air, her head would fall back and at last her hair would drift lazily through the water. That warmth was all it took, her hands gliding over her belly and sides, down her legs as they explored the entrancing touch of skin beneath the hot pool, water always giving it a slick and delightful feel.

Her head felt heavy as she turned it slightly, opening the eyes she didn't know were closed until that moment, and reached out to take a pale blue bottle off the side. Soon a leg was lifted from the warmth of water and she let herself slide back to lean against the wall of the tub, opening the lid of the bottle and pouring a generous amount of the azure liquid into her palm. With that placed to the side, she lathered the soap onto her leg and fell to sliding it all over her calf, just reaching past the ankle and moving down as far as she could above her knee. She would have to slide back down and almost dipped her head below the water, arching upwards to find more skin and slather that moisturizing blue all over her thigh.

The blue would soon fade into an off-white layering of bubbles that would glide off as the leg was dropped back into the water and the other lifted up to receive the same treatment. The soap would be put away then and another taken out for her feet, her arms, her belly, breasts, hair and face. Hushed colors found themselves poured over her and by the time she was done the water was coated with a layer of foamy suds.

Soon her hands would wander all over her glossy body again, washing away more thoroughly the soaps, and then the water would drain as the shower ran to completely cleanse her of the remaining lotions. She would step from the tub into a thick atmosphere filled with lustrous scents and the slurred, bursting feel of cleanliness that wanted something warm to rub against and wrap itself in.

A happy sigh and she would head to bed to snuggle in her blankets and fall asleep, all memories of that first step gone, though she trembled with anxiety each time it came to take that step again.


	3. Waiting

**3.**

**Title:** Waiting

**Rating:** G

**Pairing(s):** None.

**Word Count:** 528

**Warning(s):** Fluff. Lots and lots of fluff.

**Summary:** Sometimes waiting is the hardest thing in the world.

**Dedication:** To Lauren, because waiting for your phone call sometimes makes me feel exactly the same way.

**A/N:** This particular pairing needs a LOT more fan art! I would TOTALLY do a trade. I write the fanfics, you provide the art! Hint hint.

**Song:** _What's It For_ sung by Emily Curtis, from the anime Ghost in the Shell.

---

Rings of gold, side by side, huge bands settled in a black face, with a dark nose set between them. Lonesome eyes glancing ever to the doorway, a slow blink belying the lethargy that set in all too quickly.

The black head turned, whiskers twitching softly as eyes narrowed to meet the ornate clock face. Time was an ineffable concept to the inky feline, but it was still sharp in the ways of human things. When the arms of the flat faced contrivance were set a certain way, it meant that, sooner than later, its master would return home.

Whiskers sank softly as the nostrils flared in silent a sigh. The shorter, and slower of the two arms, was still a decent breadth away from that destined position. The other did not matter, for it moved faster.

A slight blink and eyes pulled shut as the dark feline's jaws parted, letting out a curious yawn in the silence of the spacious apartment.

Needless to say, the baleful eyes would stare off into space now. Another endless space of time would drift by before the lengthy body would shift and the sunny saucers turn to that endless clock face.

Eyes slowly drifted shut, the tendril that slid back from its forehead flowing softly through the air. Sensing the atmosphere for a moment, soon it was satisfied with the air's neutrality and then, it too, fluttered down to lay along the dark back.

During these long hours memories of fingers traced idly through the thick fur between its shoulders would keep the feline satisfied. Dreams of the familiar scent, like a spice thrown into the bland soup of day to day life, would sometimes provoke a rumbling purr or pleased growl to thrum out through the air of the empty living room.

At other times, the thought of something warm to rub up against and nuzzle with a delighted nose and jaw, was kept as a silent promise in the over-grown house cat. To feel the returned exchange of affection was enough to send a content mew under a breath.

The darkling feline would stretch with in something close to glee, softly pulling at the carpeting with large paws and claws that ruined the delicate make of the exotic piece. But the promised playful bout of roughhousing would be something far too looked forward too to stop the instinctive response.

A _swiiiisht_ in the door and the feline's eyes snapped open, the blonde thrown back against the door as soon as he'd closed it and turned around to face the otherwise empty apartment. A light chuckle escaped his lips, a long growl tracing the air from pleased feline with a curious expression of squinting eyes. The dark cat had its paws hooked over either of the man's shoulders, standing on hind legs and just topping the man by an inch or so.

Pursing his lips, Rufus Shinra eyed his pet with a careful, quiet eye and the cat returned the gaze evenly.

"Yeah, I'm glad to see you too, Dark Nation."

A deep rumble followed the mention of the feline's name and its eyes closed blissfully.

"Now get off me."


	4. I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor

**4.**

**Title:** I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor

**Rating:** R

**Pairing(s):** Elena/Reno

**Word Count:** 834

**Warning(s):** SMEX!

**Summary:** Drunkenness and throbbing music makes for interesting scenes on the dance floor!

**Dedication:** To Paola! For introducing me to this awesome song!

**A/N:** DAMN. This was FUN to write. 8D (DISCLAIMER! The _italics_ are all lyrics from _I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor_ sung by Arctic Monkeys.)

**Song:** _I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor_ sung by Arctic Monkeys, from their album Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not.

---

Throbbing music was meant to be duplicated by the anxious clit of femininity and an engorged member—oh! so masculine—moving together with a perfect and sticky clash. Rubbing, and strokes never to be duplicated on any canvas.

Leave up to the vengeful thirst for spirits to leave behind the card games and twist a game of Hearts into an insane cacophony of lustful thrumming, throbbing. Sliding and throwing up the brains, letting the body take over on a field broken in by a wholly different, experienced, sort of army.

With the bald Turk slipped into a faint, and their Wutian leader wrapped up in a _very_ flexible couple, the heated waves could only be eluded for so long.

Jacket dribbling off her arms, caught away beneath the mouth of the floor, white buttons of the undershirt seemed a touch too evasive for the sharp jaw and smirk of the redhead.

_Stop making the eyes at me I'll stop making the eyes at you. What 'tis that surprises me is that I don't really want you too._

Head tossed away, shoulders coming into view, it wasn't as though it mattered if his shirt had been closed before anyway. Constant loving, taking the arms that traced her belly, arms up, twist away to jerk back with a hiss and thrust, eyes more alive than the glare of disastrous colors and lights. So he saw, wicked grin flashing deviously close to crudely ruffled blonde hair.

Disastrous howl and giggles, clashing ruthlessly, deep behind his head in red mane, teeth gnashing as hers worked up high. Hands grazing over a certain someone's package and a rough jerk forward, strong female hips moving up against cheeks, throwing him around, her arm caught under his.

Hand plunged, deep dancing, caresses of the shoulders, a spiraling lust with flavors near to overwhelming, clipped songs. Hand under, between, over and out, air space and flurry of clinging nails into his mane, grazing the chest, shoulders like the ocean, he was glad she did not make him seasick.

_I bet that you look good on the dance floor! Don't know if you're looking for romance or—don't know what you're looking for! Well I bet that you look good on the dance floor! Dancing to electro—bump like a—_

"Damn it, 'Lena."

—_from nineteen eighty-four! From nineteen eighteen four!_

Twister would have been far too slow. Grasp hold of her chin, look her in the face before the fingers were taken in by wicked teeth, a tongue expressing her own feverish sentiments.

"Damn it, Reno."

_Your name isn't real but I don't care for sounds and lights! And the fumes might result in a—_

Provocative tongue work, constantly in motion, ride the stallion, take what you can—

_I said I bet that you look good on the dance floor!_

History lessons in movement, his lips round the button, thrust into him, against him, hope he'll release the glossy skin, leg wrapped halfway round hers. Body's always in motion, physics and friction couldn't care less at the abuse—_thrum thrum thrum throbbity throb throb thrrrrum_—take away the pleasure through a quick twist, buttons lost in the haze of glamour paneling.

Peeling bananas, and she was so much finer than anything of the sort. Take a step back, twist her into his arms again, show her how willing she was to be there. Bodies would not separate again.

_Oh no I don't want no Montague's or Capulet's. We're just buttoned shoes and DJ sex an'—dirty dance floors—an' dreams of naughtiness!_

Burst through seams, careless of the glories of eyes on them, into the streets, a fervent pressure in the heaaaaad. She had him against the car, he had her breasts spilling out against his chest and a corner of his airless shirt. Kissing into his hands, he digging deep, rotund lips on the ear, tongue in the cavern of a gasping mouth, choke and caught, trace the dribble onto neck, wet lips on his shaking shoulder.

Teeth into the crease of her shirtless glory, raised high—into and into inside her, a broken moan, into and into the dig site—his mouth biting at the long line, face hidden in lustrous breasts. Caught between a flame and metal hissing from the heat of their exchange, fingers tearing into his back, fingers pulled from her, pulled out, glide over his own head, bucking helpless against her, riding her higher high—high—high—higher on the roar of engines, thrust deep into like eminent—GOLD RUSH!

_Oh no I don't want no Montague's or Capulet's. We're just buttoned shoes and DJ sex! WELL I BET THAT YOU LOOK GOOD ON THE DANCE FLOOR! Don't know if you're looking for romance or—don't know what you're looking for! Well I bet that you look good on the dance floor!_

Endless flurries, glaring cacophonies of SOUNDS, and come on. I bet that _you_ look good on the dance floor.

Who cares about the day after.


	5. Pyramid Bread

**5.**

**Title:** Pyramid Bread

**Rating:** PG

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 975

**Warning(s):** Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

**Summary:** The other Turks didn't know Reno could bake. And that's probably because… he couldn't.

**Dedication:** To my sister Christine, who is such a spoilt brat and never lets me touch her stuff. I LOVE YOU! DON'T KILL ME PLEEEEASE! Dx

**A/N:** Okay, after that last one, I need some laughs.

**Song:** _Hava Nagila (Techno Remix)_

---

"Reno, are you feeling alright?"

Because, of course, when Tseng arrived in the office to find it already alight and Reno—of all people—settled there quite comfortably, stacking slices of toast on a huge platter in the middle of his desk, there had to be something wrong. Then again, maybe he shouldn't have questioned it at all. The leader of the Turks almost cringed at the thought of just what the response might entail.

"Yeah, fine Sacho!"

Tseng blinked. The red haired man never looked up from where he was sitting, legs crossed and tongue sticking determinedly out of the corner of his mouth as he really _focused_ on his wide and edible structure. Tseng frowned and refrained from crossing his arms, instead turning away without another comment. He knew if he asked he'd most _definitely_ regret it.

Soon after, Rude and Elena walked in, the bald Turk stopping in his tracks to eye the redhead with a raised eyebrow—the only hint that Reno's new hobby had stumped him at all. The blonde merely walked past, curiously presenting the question undoubtedly on Rude's mind as well.

"Uh, Reno? What are you doing?"

"Stacking bread." The blonde wasn't fazed.

"Why?"

"I wanted to make a pyramid out of something edible." Elena blinked.

"And you chose toast…?"

"Because the jelly acts like cement." Rude couldn't stand for it and was off in the farthest corner of the office, banging about to try and drown out the "reasonable" exchange between his two comrades.

"Oh you're right!" Rude tripped while trying to overstep a stray box of paperwork. Elena didn't bat an eyelash, scrunching up her face and pursing her lips, lifting a hand beneath her chin and nodding after a moment of visualizing it. "Because butter certainly wouldn't work."

Reno nodded. "Exactly."

A few minutes of delicate silence passed, during which Tseng calmly continued ignoring the transaction and Rude tenderly picked himself up from the floor, rubbing his elbow which he'd jarred as he fell.

And while papers shuffled and everyone worked away at the most boring of all assignments they'd ever had the displeasure of trolling through, Reno steadily stacked away. Rude was already a quarter through his work, and Tseng was just about finished, only a short pile left to complete. Elena couldn't help but constantly glance back and forth between the manila folders and Reno's little activity.

"Hey I'm almost done!" Reno called excitedly, jarring her out of the middle of the one intriguing sentence in the pile of reports she'd read through so far.

She pushed back her chair and stood up to glance over the paperwork piled on her desk, her mouth an excited and awed O shape at the sight. Indeed she noted how high the pyramid had climbed in the last few minutes. It was going on over three feet now with the top almost complete!

"Ohhh! Let me help!"

"No! I started this thing and I wanna finish it!" But Elena had already raced around her desk to stand in the shadow of the toast pyramid, with Reno madly slathering away the jam on the level laid down so he could start on the last few levels left. Elena bounced up and down on the balls of her feet, cheering on the redhead.

"YES! THE LAST PIIIIECE!" Reno shouted.

He lifted up the final slide of toast high above his head, jumping to his feet and miraculously not knocking the grand pyramid over. Elena was the only one cheering.

Delicately and with a look of crude intent upon his face, tongue still sticking out from the corner of his mouth, he lowered the last slice as though crowning the grand piece of architecture.

Tseng idly stepped out from behind his desk, one arm loaded with a generous amount of paperwork. A roll of the eyes might have made his point, but then again, this was Reno. So, casual as Tseng ever was, he slipped by, idly plucking three slices of toast from the "grand pyramid" and continued walking.

Just before Reno could drop the last slice, the entire thing collapsed in on itself and was skewed in every which way over the desk and floor. Reno's jaw dropped and Elena was stunned. Rude was in the back laughing silently.

"TSENG YOU MUFFNUFFIN JERK! WHAT THE HELL'D YOU DO THAT FOR?! MY MASTERPIECE!" He wailed.

He threw the final slice of toast at Tseng in anger and it konked Tseng off the side of his head. As the man paused, Reno put on a pouting face and shook his fist.

"You deserve it!"

Elena squeaked as Tseng spun around and shot a slice of toast at Reno, the redhead just dodging, though in the process falling off his desk and knocking the remainder of his "masterpiece" atop himself.

A war cry sounded from behind the shelter of the desk and the toast began flying from behind Reno's desk, splattering onto the window and the walls, the various paperwork piled on everyone's desk, and in the chaos no one really was amazed that Tseng was dodging every which way and shooting them back as best he could.

Elena squealed and hid behind her desk, but considered just escaping the war zone altogether when a particularly vicious slice of toast knocked all her paperwork down atop her.

Rude was all the way in back of the room, hiding under his desk, calmly finishing up his report on last evening's mission.

Needless to say, the room was rather sticky for a while. In the end Tseng got them all transferred out of the office on a particularly long mission and the Turks took to working from home for a few days while the place was cleaned up.

And thus, the explanation for why none of the Turks, to this day, eat toast.


	6. Reaching A Brand New Key

**6.**

**Title:** Reaching A Brand New Key

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 804

**Warning(s):** Uhh… it involves some cursing. O.o

**Summary:** When Elena floods the office with music from her own personal CD collection, Reno refuses to listen to it.

**Dedication:** My father, who introduced me to an infinite amount of music genres and shaped my future with their melodies, lullabies, beats, and crescendos.

**A/N:** The song just came on and the idea popped into my head! IT'S NOT MY FAULT I THINK OF THE TURKS AT ALL HOURS OF THE DAY AND NIGHT! Dx

**Song:** _Bailamos_ sung by Enrique Iglesias.

---

Let's just start it off by saying that… well… Tseng never expected it to be Elena this time. But she somehow caught him off guard as he was buried in his paperwork. He had even failed to notice that she was nearly half an hour late, which was not like her at all. The paperwork they'd all been toiling through, previously drowning in, had sufficiently distracted all of them. Including Reno, for once.

Goes to show just how angry President Shinra had been about their previous little… _mishap_… with the toast.

Yeah, that was probably why when the door slammed open he was jerked so suddenly out of his train of thought, Rude also jumping in his seat, and Reno falling backwards and out of his chair. All gazes went to the door, where a huge cardboard box on legs was inching through the doorway.

"Hi guys! Sorry I'm late Tseng!" it called out in a familiar genial female's voice, and as it shuffled forward steadily, Tseng rose to his feet to shut the door and could catch sight of the blonde Turk at last.

"Whatcha got there 'Lena?" Reno already standing on tippy-toes to try and peer into the large box. Tseng blinked. He had been sure that the redhead had been sprawling on the floor still….

Elena grunted as she set the box down on her desk with a loud thump, and turned to slap away Reno's hand. She frowned at him then, placing her hands on her hips and stepping between him and the large package.

"It's mine Reno! Stop touching it!"

"Is it a microwave oven and mini fridge combo we can use as an excuse to never have to go down to the cafeteria again? Is it a TV with a built in Playstation with a port for my headphones so I can finally concentrate on something without being interrupted by Tseng? Is it a bunch of firewood we can use to start a campfire in the bathroom and burn all the paperwork that Shinra gave us because Tseng decided to be an asshole and kill my toast pyramid?"

_Stay calm Tseng… don't react…._

"RENO! NO! It's my music collection! I brought all my CDs and I thought that we could listen to them and—RENO!" The redhead was already tearing open the box and pulling out the top CD before Elena could snatch it from him and shove her fist in his face, pushing him back steadily as he tried to reach over her and grab some more.

"'LENA! LET ME SEEEEE!"

"NO! YOU'LL HEAR IT SOON ENOUGH!"

Reno stuck out his tongue and Elena mimicked the movement, returning to unpacking her huge load as he went off to skulk behind his computer, muttering something about "sharing" and "caring".

What next threw them all out of their reverie was a heart-stopping wail like they'd never heard and Reno just fell out of his chair all over again, the other two men jumping higher then they had last time.

"ELENA!"

"WHAT?!" And she turned down the music so that it was now on Irritation, rather than Kill Nonbelievers mode. "Don't you like it?"

"What the hell _was_ it?!" It was Reno, climbing onto his desk with a ragged horrified expression on his face. Elena blinked and tilted her head to the side. "That was _PAINFUL_ Elena!" She blinked again and then frowned.

"You haven't even heard the entire song!"

"I don't _want_ to hear the entire song! That was _enough_!"

"No it wasn't! You haven't even heard the chorus or listened to the lyrics!"

"THOSE ARE WORDS?" Reno's jaw had gone slack, and Elena's followed suit after that statement.

"YES THEY ARE! IT'S A BEAUTIFUL SONG AND YOU CAN'T JUST COME TO THAT CONCLUSION AFTER HEARING ONLY A SECOND OF IT! NOT EVEN!"

"OH YES I CAN AND I JUST DID!" He countered.

"RENO! I really like this song! Can't you just hear the rest of it! Come on!"

"No! No no no no no no no! No 'Lena! It's not my style! You scared the shit outta us! And you want me to listen to MORE of it?!"

"Us? You're the only one complaining!" And she turned helplessly to Tseng. "Right Tseng, you don't think it's that terrible. You would listen to the entire thing before jumping to conclusions, right Tseng?"

The Wutaian man paused in his paperwork and glanced up slowly, keeping his gaze completely blank. He opened his mouth to say something, paused, closed it, glanced to the radio so blissfully silent and glanced back to Elena with the look of a caged animal.

The blonde looked like she was going to burst into tears when suddenly someone cleared their throat.

"Actually… I have their entire collection."

The other three turned their stunned gazes on Rude.


	7. Sayonara, Always Home

**7.**

**Title:** Sayonara, Always Home

**Rating:** PG

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 486

**Warning(s):** Strong emotions, poetic feel to the writing.

**Summary:** It's just the way things are.

**Dedication:** To those without hope. Chin up, my Turks.

**A/N:** Life is… tough. Life is….

**Song:** _Sanctuary_ from the videogame Kingdom Hearts II, sung by Utada Hikaru.

---

"Endless."

Perhaps… perchance… over gentle the corrugations of seconds, a memory faint would stir? Had blossoms, colours so undue for eyes long fluttering hushed, molding silent in such contumely, taken once a spare breath away, Gift-giver become, to softly lay touch to the irises red, the face porcelain, he might have shattered.

Beneath such a gesture of mind, all held so faint upon needle point, indeed he should be pierced through, rent asunder. The emotive glory, reddening the jar, making for himself a bowl instead. Sinking to depths, taking up the speechless life of a fair stone, gazing from underneath the pond.

And that should have been his harmonics, cautious flower sealing away such its nectar, frozen over by sudden chill, forever so, delicate posy.

And he really was a weak man, to succumb to melodies and music's threads of persona, half-life, hatchling to stay cocooned till such things as songs, too, would fade.

And he had etched deep interests in the roof of his case, with eyes… shut tight, then weary, soon glassy beneath for such strange a pale gasp of red.

Of voices and songs, of hurts and passive loves, of tales ever told in the dark and minds laid for ever to rest… he saw through such this sanctum place. Deep laid, softly hidden, well-spoken, though words failed him.

He had been blind.

To think old ways would die—once it lifted.

To believe in holy light—after it all.

To seek the elusive doe, Forgiveness—just after nightfall.

To ask a fragment of redemption—for just long enough.

To hold in heart such hope—far too time-consuming.

To beg Death's favor—seal away the only end.

Before such pact could be released as he had made, punishment would trace his steps for many a year. To ask, believe, hope, seek… one end, one life, one purpose.

Sealed for but endless the years, there within lay one truth, one faint glimmer in such darkness as he would ever find himself…

Life long lived, lived without boundaries, lived as wholesome as possibly it could…

"Hey Vinnie! Have you been listening to me at all?" A suddenly blink, slight turn of the head, stoic gaze flickering for a brief moment to Yuffie's face. A light shift of the shoulder, and the Wutian ninja made a noise of frustration and flung her hands in the air.

"Forget it! I give up! Caaaait!"

A soft rustle of a breath behind the collar of red, gentle a smile none would catch up.

Yes… he'd never tried to search out forgiveness. Old ways never really did die. Sorrows of a life past could not truly be erased, and he'd find himself just a touch emptier without their burden.

And silent a promise, almost, it rang. Words like Truth itself, taking wing. Nothing could change it, capture it but those who _were_ its meaning.

"_Once a Turk, always a Turk."_


	8. Love Will Save the Day

**8.**

**Title:** Love Will Save the Day

**Rating:** G

**Pairing(s):** Slight Elena/Tseng

**Word Count:** 309

**Warning(s):** None

**Summary:** Big things come in small packages.

**Dedication:** To FWS, Eba, and everyone who was in A/V when I sang this song! 3

**A/N:** I'm making the executive decision that Tseng's eyes are silver. And I'm also going from calling it "Wutaian" to "Wutian". Because the latter sounds more suitable.

**Song:** _You Gotta Be_ by Des'ree.

---

Life was dull.

Tseng idly passed his silver eyes over a sheet of paper. It was a notification of the upcoming meeting on the progress various Turks were making. It asked for his presence at such and such a place and date. He fed it to the shredder without giving it a second glance.

Life was tedious.

The Wutian had been working on the same report for the past four hours. Making sure all the information in these files coincided with what was displayed on his computer screen. Surely someone else could do the job, but he was the only one with access to such information.

Life was wearying.

He had been here for so long that a stray lock of ebon glory fell loose from his hair tie, falling into his face and dangling fluidly in front of his eyes. Everyone else had already gone home. But there was still so much work to be done before the next day began. He trudged on.

Life was unfair.

Everything had been completed at last. Tseng glanced to the clock. It seemed to display 4:13AM disapprovingly at him, but he merely lowered his eyes again, bringing up a hand to rub them gently. He sent out the last email notification. Then he stood up, gathering the load of documents into his arms, stepping outside of his office.

He returned after a few minutes had passed. All the files had been delivered to their appropriate places. He went to shut down his computer and pick up his jacket.

Life was…

He stopped short. Reaching out a hand almost hesitantly, his brows furrowed first in gentle bewilderment, then softened after a moment. He gently took up his jacket on the cusps of his fingers, shut down his computer, and walked out of the office…

…a pale daisy tenderly held in one hand.


	9. 1 New Text Message

**9.**

**Title:** 1 New Text Message

**Rating:** G

**Pairing(s):** Rufus/Tseng

**Word Count:** 890

**Warning(s):** Tseng being an asshole, as usual.

**Summary:** No one knew Tseng texted. Apparently, he does.

**Dedication:** Once more, to Lauren. Because I miss our hours of passionate exchanges through something so fickle as text messages.

**A/N:** I know. I'm writing a lot of Tseng fics lately. I can't help it! I'm going into withdrawal from not being able to RP him as much as I used to. ;-; Just, bear with me!

**Song:** _Like You Want to Believe [Antistatic Mix]_ by Collide, from the album Vortex.

---

When he had first been asked for his personal cell phone number, Tseng had been sure it had been merely for matters of business, in case the Vice President ever needed to get in touch with him in the field, or issue an order rapidly to the Turks through their raven-haired leader. It was an unusual request, true. But perhaps he should have suspected that wasn't completely the case. Whatever he had been thinking then, he had not expected this…

A bitter scowl tainted the lips of the Leader of the Turks as he dodged return-fire from his own initial assault, eyes narrowed in an irate glare. He paused to wait out his opponent, knowing they would move to the east now, attempting to circle around him and find shelter within the warehouses several blocks further back. Unfortunately for them, Tseng knew the tactics of his foes with as much clarity as he knew his own. This had not been the first time they'd tried breaking into the Shin-Ra warehouses. The last time his Turks had not been able to pick off more than two of the five skillful thieves.

Leaving three loose ends that needed to be tied off—_immediately_. That was why President Shinra had sent Tseng out here.

The long-haired man threw a sidelong glare in the direction of where he was sure Rude, Reno and Elena were hidden. He had every intention of seeing that they were sufficiently punished for their failure. He would bury them under paperwork for the next two weeks. They would be working overtime with no pay. He even had a mind to jip them on their bonus checks at the end of the month.

He frowned.

But that would mean more paperwork…

…he would make them do their own paperwork, he decided. Then show them the copies of the files they had approved themselves. Maybe that would encourage them to pay more attention to what they were doing.

Suddenly the shooting stopped. He shot out from his momentary hiding place, merely a swift shadow, turning a corner and stalking silently after the louder steps of his prey. This time, he would show his sloppy Turks how it was properly done.

He was cornering his foe now. He had moved around and ahead of the man that raced to get back to his two buddies. If everything had gone as planned, they would already have been eliminated. He would be left alive for interrogation purposes. He caught sight of a pre-scouted fire escape and pulled himself up onto the ladder with ease, holstering his Walther momentarily while he quickly ascended to the fourth story.

The perpetrator was just in sight. Tseng pulled out his Walther and lined up the weapon with the heel of the retreating criminal, leaning out daringly upon the frail railing to get a better shot. He strained himself forward, feeling the rail give way faintly under the pressure he was putting on it, ignoring the strained creak of the feeble fire escape. The perp hesitated and seemed lost for a moment. _Perfect._

Just as he leaned forward and squeezed the trigger—his phone rang alarmingly. He jumped in surprise, and lost his balance, eyes widening as the rail gave way. Only his fast reflexes stopped him from plummeting to the ground nearly forty feet below as he dangled with a firm grip on the platform he had just been standing on.

Irksomely he fished out his cell phone and glanced at the screen. Curiously, it read _1 New Text Message_. Wondering who on earth could be texting him, Tseng flipped open the phone, eyebrows raising in awe as he saw the sender. It was from Rufus Shinra. But when he opened the message, he was dumbstruck.

It read: "yo tsengy wut u up 2 homie bro u b trippin on my madz txtin skillz wurd up dawg"

Tseng considered letting go of the railing and ending this cruel torture right there and then. However, he ended up back in the office that evening, irate and unjustly shamed after a condemning reprimand from none other than President Shinra himself. The last of their perpetrators had slipped beyond even Tseng, and the President was _not_ pleased.

Alone in his executive office, Tseng dialed the Vice President. As soon as the blonde picked up, not waiting for him to even ask who it was, Tseng bit off a reproachful command. "Never do that again." Without waiting for Rufus Shinra to respond, he hung up on his superior, for once not caring of the consequences.

A few seconds after he had placed down the phone however, it chirruped and he picked it up, eyeing the small screen that taunted, _1 New Text Message_. He saw that it was once again from the Vice President. It simply read, "lol". Tseng narrowed his eyes and glared at the message venomously.

In his office, the Vice President was fully enjoying the upper hand he had over the usually apathetic Turk Leader. But when his phone buzzed, he lifted it up to note with mingled amusement and surprise that it was not a phone call, but a text message waiting for him. But once he had flipped open the phone—noting it was from _Tseng_—he scowled and clenched his teeth.

It read simply, "STFU n00b".


	10. How Rude

**10.**

**Title:** How Rude

**Rating:** PG

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 767

**Warning(s):** Nasty references to Heidegger and Rude. Gags

**Summary:** Reno just had to be rude.

**Dedication:** Alice! For brainstorming with me until I got this one just right!

**A/N:** Alice has become my drabble inspirer, and it's thanks to her these are getting more CRACK-filled as I go along. How I still manage to stay in character is beyond me…

**Song:** _Butterfly_ by Back-On

--

Everything was perfect. Reno had his prey lined up perfectly, and nothing was in his way. One step, crouching low behind the distracted figure. Another step, and—he pounced! And in the chaos of flying papers and a startled shout from his bald co-worker, Reno triumphantly snatched up Rude's sunglasses and scrambled to his feet away from the fallen Turk.

"Yes!" he cried enthusiastically, shoving the shades onto his face and grinning slyly at the frustrated hazel-eyed gaze now staring up at him from the floor in mild shock. "At last I can try these babies on! Lookie here, 'Lena!" He twirled around, raising an arm to catch the blonde's attention. "I can be Rude too!" He scrunched up his face, attempting to force a blank expression, and failing terribly at it. Try as he might, he could not master the bald Turk's stoicism.

By now, Rude was righting his seat, glaring intensely at the redhead. "Give them ba—," he began, but Reno had already stolen his righted seat, peering intently through the shades at the computer screen. "Ooo! An email to Heidegger! '…insurgents silenced with little to no trouble…' blah blah blah. Rude, your report's boring as Tseng."

And suddenly the redhead was typing away at the computer intently, reading aloud his personal touch to the unfinished email. " 'Oh Heidi, how I love your resounding chortle! It makes me weak at the knees, and all I can think about are those lips—' Hey! No touchy!" He dodged a grasping hand that seemed just as eager to strangle Reno as much as it wanted to retrieve the shades still perched on the irritating Turk's face.

"Give them back," Rude threatened, still after the ducking redhead. "Hell no!" shouted the other man, sticking his tongue out. "Oi! Rude! You try one more time and I'll push Send!" That stalled the bald Turk's efforts and he glared darkly at his co-worker. It was a tense silence, broken only by Reno's devilish smirk as Rude sighed and turned away in defeat. Reno leapt to his feet gallantly and strutted back to his desk, smugly brandishing his compatriot's shades.

Rude could do nothing but endure the pain of the remainder of the day without his trademark accessory. Reno was ready to remotely trigger the saved email upon a moment's notice. Eventually, when they all checked out of the office for the day, Reno still bore the shades as proudly as ever, and vowed to send Rude's unfinished email unless he let the redhead keep the shades for the remainder of the week. Rude bitterly allowed him to take them home.

_LATER THAT EVENING…_

A shadowed figure slipped under the eves of an apartment's first flight of stairs. After seeming to make sure the coast was clear, it crept up the stairs of the several story apartment in utter silence until it paused upon the fifth floor in front of the last door in the hall.

It broke in with considerable ease and ghosted through the room, seeming to know exactly where to go. A door was left carelessly ajar, and inside sprawled a heavily snoring redhead. The darkling shadow approached maliciously, and as it stole silently through the yellow light coming in through a window, the gleam of a blade caught the dull glow…

_THAT MORNING…_

A terrible, gruesome scream shook the entire apartment building, waking every last resident, their hearts leaping into their throats at the blood-curdling wail.

_AT THE SHIN-RA HEADQUARTERS…_

Elena's hands flew to cover her mouth, her eyes wide with shock, a scream barely muffled through her hands. Even Tseng blanched, his normally apathetic gaze overwhelmed with mingled repulsion and surprise. And Rude's vacant expression was replaced with… a deeply smug smirk.

Reno glowered from just within the doorway and chucked the familiar pair of shades at Rude's head with all the force he could muster, hoping they would shatter upon impact or at least draw blood. But they were better quality than he had anticipated and merely hit Rude without causing him to do any more than smirk wider.

Reno ground his teeth, jaw clenched, and if he could, he would have murdered the smug bastard where he sat. Instead he wrenched himself around, refusing to meet the gaze of anyone else in the room, and stomped loudly enough to his desk to nearly cause the floor to give way beneath his feet. The shoddy fluorescent lights gleamed carelessly off of Reno's beautiful, shining bald cranium.

"You wanted to be Rude," the satisfied and bald man called after his enraged co-worker.

"Shut up."


	11. Blackout

**11.**

**Title:** Blackout

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairing(s):** Reno/Rude/Elena, cause it's me. :3 And I do things like that. X3

**Word Count:** 2,254

**Warning(s):** Random violence, suggestive themes towards the end, more random violence, slap-happy Turks, staircases, high-pitched screams, language, etc. They're Turks, you should expect this nonsense by now. :'D

**Summary:** There's a blackout at the Shin-Ra Electric Power Company? …how ironic.

**Dedication:** Michelle! Because I _really_ want to go to Pennsylvania and have a blackout there again. :3 And we can have fuuuuuun~ X3

**A/N:** Gaaaasssppppuh. I like blackouts. They mean eating ice cream while playing cards by candlelight. 8D And if that isn't fun, think of the NEAR-BLIND PILLOW FIGHTS! …yeah, we break things. xD On another note, this fic is TOTALLY breaking the 1,000 word limit I set for myself with drabbles. So I hope you enjoy it even more~! 8D

**Song:** _Rideback_ by Mell.

- - - - - - -

The weather sucked.

It had been raining all day and now on into the evening hours. Why the heck they were still at work was in part explained by the fact that none of them had any desire to go home in these conditions. And it wasn't so much that they minded a little rain—but it was a _downpour_. One that would put a waterfall to shame with its intensity. And they didn't have to glance outside to see the streaks of lightning that lit up the windows in brilliant flashes every few minutes. It was like a perpetual, wet hell had decided to plant its sorry ass right atop their heads and refuse to move.

It wasn't so bad though, because amidst the rolls of reeling thunder and the howling, mournfully aggressive wind, they sat in the lounge reserved for Turk operatives alone in peace, cards scattered over the tabletop. All the shades were lifted, so the display outside the large windows made a chaotic background compared to the considerably calm and dull activity they were engaged in.

While Elena had her face screwed up in stern concentration, studying her cards and those laid out on the table, Rude seemed ready to fall asleep, his shades for once not upon his face but tucked into the breast pocket of his standard Turk jacket. Reno didn't even pretend to bother wearing his, having discarded it hours prior, sitting casually back with eyes glazing over and a face that bespoke the most prevalent boredom out of all of them.

Then the lights went out.

A huge surge of energy throbbed and thrummed throughout the entire building before a _huge_ sound shook all three of them, eliciting a scream from Elena and a shout from Reno. It was like nothing they had ever heard before, a mixture of an explosion and some futuristic electrical concoction of a cacophony from out of a sci-fi movie, or one's nightmares. It took the calm, awkward embrace of Rude—whose arms she had scrambled into out of fear—to stop Elena's screaming before at last they realized no second wave would come.

"W-w-w-what w-was th-that?!" Elena stuttered miserably, clutching onto Rude as though her life depended on it, her eyes wide from fright and in the utter darkness that now flooded the large lounge.

"S'lightnin', 'Lena," Reno grumbled from somewhere in front of her.

"The generator should come on soon," Rude offered, thankful when that seemed to calm Elena down enough that she let him go and sat back down, feeling for where the table in front of her was.

"Well, it'd better come back soon!" she said, grabbing at the cards that had dropped all over the table and the floor. "I swear, if I didn't know it was the storm, I'd say it was you trying to ruin our game, Reno."

"Don't give him any ideas." There was Rude's voice, to her right, and the sound in it was almost amusing. Funny how you could begin to pick up on a guy's emotions from needing to listen to only his voice.

By now though, it had definitely been long enough to make the Turks suspicious of the still-same darkness. The generator never took this long to come on.

"Why isn't it working?" Elena whined, more annoyed now than worried. "We won't get to finish our card game!"

A loud snort interrupted her, followed by the sound of someone getting up. By now, their eyes were partially used to the darkness, so Elena could just make out Reno's form moving beyond her on the other side of the table. "Fine by me. I'm sick an' tired a'waitin' here anyway," he quipped and walked cautiously around the sofa he'd been sprawled out upon.

"Where are you going?" Elena asked in surprise, rising to her feet to follow him with Rude echoing her movements presently.

"Ta check it out, 'Lena," he threw over a shoulder with a grumble. "S'better than sittin' here fer an hour waitin' fer ya ta throw a fricken card."

"Hey! This is a thinking game!"

"No, it's a _BORING_ game."

"Oh Reno," she pouted. "You're impossible!"

"He's a sore loser," Rude interrupted, catching up to Elena's side in the dark as they walked from the lounge into the hall.

"Didn't see _you_ doin' any better, baldy!" Reno shouted from up ahead.

"You two are—Reno where are you going?!" Elena cut herself off, having lost sight of the redhead's lanky form as he raced off into the darkness spontaneously.

"Away from YOU!" came the shouted reply, echoed only by his loping steps as he ran.

"But Reno! We should stick together! How will you know where you are going! You could get lost in this dark, or worse!"

"I'll be fi—aaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiine!"

Suddenly the sound of a huge rumbling came from somewhere up ahead and Elena gasped before walking faster towards the large series of noises cautiously.

"RENO! Oh Reno are you okay?! Reno, answer me! Where are you?!"

An arm thrust out across her chest stopped her, and she turned to look at Rude questioningly. He merely nodded downwards in the almost impregnable darkness. Looking before her and at the floor now, she saw what had caused the ruckus.

Stairs. And at the landing of one a good fifteen steps down, Reno sprawled in a murky dark ball of hurt.

"Oh Reno!" Elena gasped and cautiously walked down the stairs, grateful for Rude's presence at her side, prepared to help her if she misplaced a foot. "Reno, are you alright?" At last she was by his side, and made as though to kneel down, placing a hand out against his limb. "Does it hurt, Reno?"

"No. It felt like the first damn cup-a-coffee in da day," came his sarcastic drawl from the other end of what she was addressing. "An' get away from my ass!" With that he slapped at her hand which she removed with a squeak when she realized she'd been touching his thigh and not his arm.

"I'm sorry! But what else do you expect when it's dark and you're off frolicking and falling down stairs!" She huffed and threw a glare at him that he probably couldn't see and wouldn't give a care about anyway if he could.

"Downstairs we should be able to find someone else to ask about this blackout," Rude's calm voice interrupted. With a nod, taking hold of the taller man's arm, Elena stepped forward and down the second set of stairs to the next floor. "Let's go then!"

"Oh sure, leave me behind," came the pained tones of Reno's complaints. "I'm jus' FINE ya guys. Fallin' down a flight'a stairs is NO WAY painful." Nevertheless, he followed them, if a little slower. "Do either of ya even know where the heck we're goin'?"

"No."

"I think we're—" Elena began.

"Ah, who gives a rip. Jus' warn me if there are any more stairs!" Reno grumbled.

"Well, if you keep acting so snobby, Reno, maybe we wo—," Elena threw back with mild venom as they came to a crossroads in the halls, sounding more irritated than angry really.

"Shh." Warned Rude suddenly, and Elena froze at his side.

"What—?"

"Quiet." Now it was Reno, coming up behind her, placing a comforting but stilling hand on her shoulder.

She glanced up to him and then into the ominous blackness before them.

"Wait here," Reno cautioned and beckoned silently for Rude to come with him. Elena stifled a squeak of fright as they left her, but Reno threw a glance back at her warning her to be quiet with a finger over his lips. She swallowed and nodded, watching as they melted away into the darkness.

This was so ridiculous! She was a Turk for crying out loud! How could she get scared of something as silly as the dark? But if Rude had said to be quiet…

Silently she hugged herself, trying to comfort and reassure herself that there was nothing at all that should be worrying her. Maybe they had just heard someone up ahead and so they were going to check out if it was anyone that knew what was going on with the generators. Yeah, that could be it! There was nothing to be scared of. Nothing at all!

Then she heard something herself. She froze again, tense. Suddenly, it was closer, and… Then she could see them. Coming back for her. As soon as they could make out one another's faces again, Reno shrugged.

"We didn't find anything," Reno said, throwing a scowl at Rude. "Mr. I-Think-I-Heard-Something-Suspicious was hallucinating."

"Hallucinations are sight-based, Reno," Rude corrected.

"Fine. Hallucinating with his ears."

"That's called 'hearing th—'"

"Oh shaddup, Big-Head Baldy-Pants. You're startin' ta remind me of Tseng." Reno made a face.

Elena meanwhile sighed with relief. "Thank goodness it was nothing," she breathed. "I hate not knowing what's the—why are you looking at me like that, Reno?" Her face turned quizzical at the wide-eyed look he was giving her. But no, not her. But… _past_ her…?

Suddenly her eyes widened as sudden terror gripped her, and she turned her head around slowly—loathing having to look… _Oh Ramuh, please let there be nothing there!_

Then suddenly, a pale white appendage like a claw or a hand came out of the darkness and clamped down onto her shoulder.

She _screamed!_

"AAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" she shrieked and whirled around, punching whatever it was violently in what she could only _hope_ was it's face, and hearing it cry out and crumple to the ground. As soon as it was off her she screamed again—and raced down the hall with the other two dashing off after her too, Reno screaming terrified obscenities as they went and Rude soon passing the other two in his flight to get away from the whatever-it-was that had grabbed Elena.

Still on the floor as the Turks went screaming down the hall, Rufus Shinra lay unconscious. When he woke up… there was going to be hell to pay…. If he could figure out who the hell had hit him.

"HOLY MOTHER OF GAYA! WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!" Reno's shrill words came out as they threw themselves down the hallway and around a corner.

"OhmyHolyewwewwewwwwww! Don't remind me of it, Reno! _Don't remind me!_ Oh my Holy, it _touched_ me!" Elena squealed in fright. "And I thought your leg was injured, Reno!" she suddenly shouted, vehemently turning her fright into an excuse to be upset with him.

"Pfft! Jus' cause it hurts dun mean I can't run da fuck away from a friggin' MONSTER!" He shot back.

"Reno, Elena, wai—," Rude shouted from up front in the darkness, unable to be made out he had gotten so far ahead.

"WHAT?" Reno shouted back. Too late. With an outcry, the redhead and blonde female crashed into Rude, the man having come to a complete standstill up ahead. And before they could even ask him why, they found themselves… falling.

Their combined screams and shouts as they tumbled down the stairs together didn't stop it from being any more hilarious. Fortunately for them or not, the stairs ended almost directly in front of a wall in which the men's bathroom was located, and their combined speed propelled them through the door of said bathroom into a collapsed form of tangled limbs and aches.

"Gah! Oh my Holy, get off my _leg_, Reno!"

"Me?! Stop kneeing me in da groin, 'Lena! Shit!"

"…"

"Shut up! Yer jus' as heavy ya pansy-ass! Get off da both'a us, Rude!"

It was at that precise moment that the electricity came back on, flooding the bathroom and causing them all to shut their eyes or turn their heads away from the lights blinding them now. It was also when quite suddenly and unexpectedly, the door to the bathroom opened. When they were finally able to look up at who it was, they froze.

Standing in silence, gazing down at their entangled forms, was who else but Tseng? Fate had a cruel way of arranging these meetings, it seemed. It was only as he continued to stare at them, his eyebrows raising not moments after the sight of them caught his eyes, that they became excruciatingly aware of their state… or, er… how they were… 'positioned.'

Their mad race through the halls, along with their long fall had not merely disheveled them dramatically, but they lay with clothes falling open, breathing heavily from an attempt to still catch their breaths, and wrapped up quite suggestively in one another. As it was, there was absolutely no way in which _anyone_ walking in on this situation could have thought anything of them but the dirtiest of thoughts.

Dipping his head and shaking it quietly, Tseng merely let the door shut and walked away down the hall. He decided he did not want to know.

Looking to each other for a moment, suddenly there was a mad scramble to get away from one another, and Elena screamed something shrill again.

"Tseng, wait!" came the desperate cry of Reno. "S'not what ya think! I swear!"

Tseng merely walked on, ignoring his Turk and closed his eyes as though trying to block the knowledge of what he'd seen. Well. On another note, this almost certainly proved that the one who had knocked out the Vice-President was not one of his Turks. The rest of what it proved he would rather… _not_ think about.


	12. One of the Guys

**12.**

**Title:** One of the Guys

**Rating:** PG-13

**Pairing(s):** None

**Word Count:** 1,340

**Warning(s):** Violence! YAY VIOLENCE! XD And cursing. 8'D Blame Andy. XD FOR ONCE IT'S NOT RENO'S FAULT, HOORAH! xD

**Summary:** She was such a contradiction they couldn't help but admire her.

**Dedication:** To every fan of Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis! Long live the Original Turks!

**A/N:** When I began writing these fics, I fully intended for them to be centered only on the main four Turks shown in the FFVII game. However, over the years I became aware and fell in love with the storyline and characters of Before Crisis, a mobile game released only in Japan as part of an expansion to the FFVII Compilation and a prequel to the official release of Crisis Core. With this in mind, I want to give my OT some love. ;3

**Song:** _Hymn (Gammer & G-Spencer Remix)_ by Tina Cousins.

- - - - - - -

With the advent of winter as the month changed from one into the next, the weather had turned viciously chill. Most of them avoided and loathed the outdoors at this time. Half of them got sick. Even with the holidays fast approaching, a mood of distaste and irksomeness settled over many of them. Only a few of the more cheerful were bound to keep going. And for all that the others were appreciative of their efforts at brightening their doused spirits, sometimes it was just too much to make an effort.

So they grimly set their lips and bore it. Because there was no way in whatever frigid hell they were in now that Tseng would let any of them slip up on their duties and attendance, though he wasn't so cold hearted as to penalize them for getting ill. In fact, he treated Elena so kindly, even with the ever-present sternness about her taking a serious effort at recuperating, that she showed up at work even though she felt miserable.

Of course, this turned Tseng's office into a conjoined lounge for the ill and sickly. Though he sighed and commented about their unwillingness to take the short trip to the extensive medical ward not far from their locale, he didn't do much else. Things were hectic during this time. The battle against AVALANCHE was taking its toll on the Turks as well as the rest of ShinRa, and try as they might to counteract and wipe out the terrorist faction, with the Wutai War barely completed a couple years back, things were proving more difficult than expected.

So it was during one of their visits to the makeshift medical ward outside Tseng's office that Andrew and Reno heard about one of the newbies to have been recruited into the Turks to help out with the new threat from the just formed AVALANCHE group. Andrew—one of the Turks that had been around for about at year or so by this time, and previously a gang leader in the slums of Midgar, threw a curious, devious grin towards his senior.

"Wanna check it out, man?"

Reno smirked thoughtfully and slipped his hands into his front pockets, already turning away. "Let's go, newcomer."

"Augh, man. Cut out the bull, Red! I ain't been a newbie in a shitload a' time!"

"Ya'll always be a newcomer ta me, Andy. Les'go."

It took them only a short time to make it over to the training facilities. But they were both sorely disappointed when they found only a few straggling low-class soldiers present.

"Shit, nothin'," Andrew commented dejectedly.

"Look over there, bud." Reno nodded over to the far side of the spacious gym to where the open platforms for sparring were placed. Andy followed his elder's gaze and a figure in a dark suit caught his eye. But it was a girl. Not that the female Turks weren't kick-ass in their own ways, but she had no weapons on hand. He stepped forward and continued to the other side of the gym even as Reno grunted—a noise that meant for him to hold up and which he promptly dismissed. In fact, he noted as he moved closer, she looked as though she was just pulling on something akin to the biker gloves he was so familiar with back when he was on the streets. The members of his gang that rode wore those religiously even when not on their bikes.

"Shiva, what the fuck can a girl do with a pair a' gloves and no weapon?" he scoffed.

Apparently, she had heard him.

Suddenly the suited woman turned. Her long, free mane of charcoal mouse brown hair fell down her full back and just past her waist, framing in shorter strands the left side of her face while the right was a tad longer and melted away into the rest of the thick locks. Her complexion was fair, and her face instantly screamed that she was not someone to mess with. Without even trying, she looked like the kind of badass women that one rarely saw in the world, this note only further accentuated by her deep garnet irises and the frown that settled on her lips.

Taken aback by the look on her face for even just a fraction of a moment, Andrew couldn't have been less prepared for what happened next than if he'd fallen down the stairs while blindfolded.

(Reno: Hey! I resent that! Can we move on from the last fic please?! Shoot, man! Dx)

One moment she had been standing quite straight looking right into his face, not even fully turned towards him, and the next she had twisted around so fast her very motions were a blur. Held in perfect balance, her body was held at an angle, one long, powerful leg held directly out at his face, the arched sole of her shoe pressing just up against his nose. Not a tremor ran through her body from the strain such a position would have inflicted on anyone else, and she stayed at the slightly more than perpendicular angle for a full few seconds before launching off from the ground with her other leg. As the one foot left his nose, her body twisted in the air and the other came round, hooking against his neck while the other found his ankle. With more power than the suit revealed, she had wrenched his feet out from under him as though lifting a piece of paper from off a table and sent his face crashing into the wooden paneling of the floor, a single hand upon the floor keeping her aloft in the air long enough so that the move could be completed flawlessly before she concluded the spin with a flexible landing.

"Fucking shit! Holy motherfuckin' Lady Luck!" Andrew cussed, another spew of them coming out of his mouth as he sat back and gingerly cradled his elbow. "What the hell wa—SHUT UP DICKWAD!" he spat at Reno, who was beside himself with laughter.

"'Ey, you asked fer it, man," Reno finally managed to get out as he stepped past the rod-wielding Turk and to the female fighter in their attire. "Yer name, kid?"

She surprised them by smiling smugly and holding out a curled hand, and as Reno glanced at it and put forward his to shake hers uncertainly, she clasped it heartily and stepped forward, smacking him on the back just as heavily and vigorously. That shocked them both more. "Cyr," she said, her voice a casual drawl. "Pronounced 'Sire' or 'Sir,' dun really matter ta me." She grinned at their dumbfounded gaze, only to punch Reno in the shoulder as he burst into another bout of laughter.

"What's up with you, man?" she jeered, eyes dancing in her otherwise hard face. "Can't stand to be out-sired?"

"Anything but, doll," Reno quipped, a languid, curious grin overtaking his expression. This was _definitely_ an interesting turn in events.

"Shit!" The interruption came from the only disabled spectator of the bunch. "Tell me you're not a queer!" Andrew groaned, picking himself up and gazing over the Lady Turk's body with clear disapproval of the waste that would be should it be true.

_That_ earned him a solid punch in the arm that had him wincing away and another curse. "Fuckin' Shiva, bitch! You ever heard you hit hard for a girl?" he cried out reproachfully.

"Nah, but a pansy like ya shouldn't talk," she remarked and grinned, throwing an arm over the brighter brunette's shoulder. "Let's go get some drinks. I'm already sick an' tired of putting up with your bull."

Reno could only chortle as the martial arts fighter led the way out into the bitter wind of winter, landing Andrew with a fierce noogie when he complained about the chill. This was going to be a brilliant addition to their pack, that was for sure. Reno would have to remember to thank Tseng when he got back.

'Thank Shiva for the season of giving.'


	13. First Snow

**13.**

**Title:** First Snow

**Rating:** G

**Pairing(s):** None; perhaps a hint of Tseng and Elena if you look~

**Word Count:** 1,567

**Warning(s):** None—wow! That's a change! xD

**Summary:** There's more to them… than lies under the surface.

**Dedication:** To… Lyla, for making my snowy days full of love and fond, blissful memories. I will never forget the majesty of them.

**A/N:** I was telling my friend about this, and I got so excited with the possibility! So I just had to write it up. I'm so lighthearted with snow finally coming here. I just wanted to share the feeling with the rest of you. Hope you all have a white Christmas! And enjoy your New Year!

**Song:** _Strangers_ by Yoko Kanno.

- - - - - - -

Winter had been long in coming. The temperature never stayed quite the same, and when it dipped below freezing, the rains did not come to satisfy their hearts. Until one night, a Sunday, great winds came and brought with them a fierce storm. Overnight, the face of Midgar was transformed into a pure, unblemished countenance. Children squealed with delight at the snow day this provided while parents went about harping about their little ones not being bundled up warmly enough. Kids and adults alike however soon found they could not resist, and magic was born of this: the first snow of the season.

Their day was not canceled, of course. Inclement or extreme weather did not mean a Turk could call the day off, and so they all showed their faces at the office as typical, none so glum this time about the start to a new week. Monday's ilk was buried beneath the whispered powder-white loves of their own childlike delights. For a time, they left behind silly squabbles and usual complaints. Magic, truly it had to be. Elena could not recount a time when Tseng had seemed so warm, or Reno so willing to help. Even Rude seemed to have a particular animated excitement about him that proved invigorating.

When lunch time came around, Tseng surprised them all by dismissing them for the day. The look of pure glee and bewildered but joyous surprise on Reno and Elena's faces caused the dark haired Turk to chuckle. "Go on. You've been looking out the window every chance you could get. Besides," he noted with a curious amusement in his voice. "You accomplished more work today than you do in two days' time normally."

Tseng even laughed as Reno whooped, leapt to his feet and grabbed the thicker jacket he'd been wearing over his suit blazer. "Love ya, bossman!" Reno called with a wink, saluting Tseng informally before slipping out the door. Rude was soon to follow, although he did turn back and look over his superior curiously. Elena noticed, of course and smiled at Rude, placing a hand on his arm before looking back to their boss. "You're not coming, sir?" she asked hopefully.

Tseng shook his head, smiling dismissively. "I'm afraid I can't. Your work is done, but mine is only just beginning." He chuckled a little at the downcast expression that came to Elena's face. "Don't worry about me. Go on and enjoy yourselves. You'll be back to work again tomorrow, so please." Stepping back behind his desk, he heard Rude make a noise close to a sigh before looking up to see Elena's timid smile and Rude's retreating back.

"Alright then, sir! Please enjoy the weather too when you get the chance!" Elena called and then closed the door after herself.

With a soft smile, Tseng turned to his work and exhaled steadily. He had turned back to a document on his desk, checking the corresponding information on his computer silently for a few minutes. After the seventh run through, with nothing truly processing, he sighed and closed the flap of the folder he'd been looking through. Silently he organized his desk and put aside the work he had not yet completed. With a quiet glance over things, he paused, wondering at his own decision. 'It's not like you,' they would say, but that thought only made him smile.

He grabbed his own dark overcoat and made his way outside.

Although he had intended to find them and join their group, he found himself lost not unnaturally in his surroundings. The expansive ShinRa amenities spread out under a clean blanket of thick snow that consumed a good few inches of his boots. Although there were plenty of areas that were clearly already trampled underfoot, long expanses still remained untouched, partially due to the lack of certain training operations on the outer facilities. It made it easy to get lost in the beauty of this purity, so difficult to find in Midgar otherwise.

Suddenly however, he felt a twinge in the back of his head. Swiftly he stepped back, leaning further away from where he was just standing, his arm thrust out just enough from his body to maintain his balance. He glanced to the side, his eyes expressing clear bewilderment until he caught sight of Reno not far to the left, stomping his foot and cursing his boss's good reflexes apparently. Rude took advantage of the redhead's momentary distraction to shove a handful of snow into Reno's face, to the delighted laughter of Elena, who was half hidden by a large mound of snow she was sitting next to. Tseng could only laugh at their antics, noticing how Rude attempted to evade his partner only to be shoved ungracefully into the snow as Reno tackled him.

As Elena lifted herself up and ran up to Tseng, the other two were hard at work outdoing each other. Reno could be seen shoving cold snow down the other's jacket and then running off while snowballs pelted him accurately from Rude's only slightly smeared sunglasses. "Sir! You came out after all!" Elena cried happily as she reached him, grabbing onto his arm and smiling up at him happily. "That's so wonderful!"

Suddenly a snowball hit Elena square in the back of the head, and Tseng stifled a smile just barely, noting that it had been Reno who'd thrown it. "Dang it, Elena! Stop protecting him!" he shouted from a distance. Elena in the meanwhile had turned and was making revenge snowballs as she shouted back. "Protecting him! Why you! I know you hit me on purpose, Reno! I'll get you back!"

"Ha! You can't hit me, 'Le—ACK! WHAT THE—?! OOMPH!" Reno was obliterated swiftly, and knocked to the ground by three snowballs all at once. Rude had gotten him in the back of the head, Elena in the face, and Tseng threw one just as deftly after hers as well. "Ya double crosser, Rude! I'll get ya fer this!" he shouted, already ready to counter.

"Yeaaaaaahhhh ha!" Elena cried out as she charged Reno, pouncing on him from behind and trying to knock him down without success. Her battle cry turned into a laughter and scream of delight as Reno spun around with her on his back. "Tseng! Tseng help meeeee-aaaaahhhhh! RENO YOU'LL FALL—AHHH!" As the two of them toppled over, Tseng raced up to them and caught the blonde, pulling her away in the nick of time. Reno fell face forward in the snow and soon lifted himself spluttering and flailing.

Rude took this as an opportunity to attack Tseng, who twisted away and placed Elena down. "Quickly! Make snowballs! I'll keep him at bay!" And with this the Turk leader jumped into the fray, dodging and weaving, and not always able to evade the attacks coming from both sides. It was amazing. Elena soon came up with backup fire that allowed Tseng to withdraw and as they all ran out of snowballs to throw they ended up just throwing snow in general. It became a tight knit group of flying snow and laughter. Even Tseng and Rude were smiling more unguardedly than any had seen them for a long time.

"Got ya this time, bossman!" Reno cried suddenly and chucked a surprise snowball at Tseng.

The man made as though to dodge, and suddenly slipped. The next thing he knew, he was lying flat on the ground with Reno cracking up over him and Elena joining in after the initial scream of shock. Tseng blinked in surprise and then smirked as Reno came closer to him, suddenly kicking out his leg. Unfortunately, Reno just toppled right atop him, losing his footing just as his boss had and landing across his stomach.

"Shoot man! Can't I get to—," Reno began complaining.

"Rude no!" Elena shouted.

Suddenly Tseng's eyes shot upward, and the sight they saw before everything went white was a giant clump of snow being held high overhead by the bald Turk, a devious smile on his usually stoic face. Reno, of course, cracked up until Rude dropped another mound on his head. The redhead and dark haired Turks soon had both sat up, wiping snow out of their faces as best they could while the rest was helplessly all over their outfits and hair. Tseng shook his head and ran a hand through his hair experimentally, smiling warmly at Elena as she continued her laughter. Lifting up hand, he was helped to his feet by Rude and aided Reno in getting up afterwards. "Nice tactic," he complimented the bald Turk.

"Thanks," Rude said warmly.

"Ugh, I'm wet in places I don't wanna _be_ wet!" Reno groaned and rolled his eyes at Rude, throwing him a glare that waned as the bald man smiled at his partner.

"So let's go somewhere else!" Elena chimed, stepping up to the other three, her face bright.

Tseng smiled at her and nodded, looking to the other two. "Sure. Choose a place, and I'll treat you."

"Nice! This is _definitely_ my kinda day! Hey, bossman? Can we skip work tomorrow?"

"Absolutely not."

"Aww come _on!_ Not even come in late?"

"Reno, don't push it."

"Hey, I ain't pushin' NO ONE. ACK! RUDE! That was SO not fair!"

Their laughter faded off after their departing forms. Something about the first snow… was always so… magical.

- - - - - - -

**Author's Note:** I want to wish every one of my readers a very Merry Christmas and a wonderfully Happy New Year! And for those of you who have other religions, I wish you the best of times and great happiness! I'll see you all in the new year! I hope you enjoyed this update, so if you did, please review! Thank you!


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